Everyone Is A Lord: My Talent Is A Little Too Strong Chapter 2574: 1419: The Source of the Great Catastrophe

Leo Ray observed the trembling old wandering poet with a grave expression, his mind clouded with uncertainty. "Nicholas, I am aware that these memories are a nightmare you wish to bury," he said solemnly. "However, this information is vital to me and the future of the entire human clan. Please, ensure you recount every detail without omission."

Having voiced his concerns, Leo Ray waited in silence for the old man's reply.

"Rest easy, Your Majesty. Though I am a man of no consequence, I am no craven," Old Nick replied with a firm nod. "Your Majesty has shown me great kindness, providing a sanctuary for a drifter like myself. Regardless of how bone-chilling these visions are, I shall confront them with courage!"

The old poet gripped the armrests of his chair to steady his shaking frame. He took a deep breath, composed his thoughts, and allowed his eyes to lose focus as he drifted back into his past.

"Once that overwhelming wave of terror consumed me, my senses failed. My limbs turned to stone, and the world around me dissolved into nothingness. The only reality left was those bizarre, watching eyes—gazing down with a frigid, mocking disdain."

"Just as I felt my mind breaking, a cacophony of noise erupted in my head. It felt as though I had been thrust into a chaotic, foreign market where thousands of voices were screaming directly into my ears."

"The sounds varied from shrill shrieks to guttural rasps. They spoke with frantic speed in a tongue I could not grasp, yet every syllable dripped with malice and aggression. It was a dissonant, jagged melody—like the whispers of demons or the muttering of madmen—that made my skull throb with agony."

Old Nick’s breathing grew heavy and ragged, a testament to the vividness of the horror he was reliving.

"I lost all sense of time. Eventually, amidst that mental storm, three distinct phrases emerged from the chaos: 'Great Catastrophe,' 'Announcement Messenger,' and 'Spreading Fear.' Of all those words, 'Great Catastrophe' was the one repeated most incessantly."

The old man’s eyes began to regain their clarity as he reached the end of his tale. "The memories that follow are merely broken shards," he concluded.

"I cannot say why those monstrous eyes took pity on me, letting me slip back into the subterranean currents. I remember fleeing the teleportation gate in a state of pure madness, bursting out of the cavern, and finally collapsing into the snowdrifts at the gates of Viennas City... I recall nothing else until the moment I woke up here."

Silence filled the room as Old Nick finished. Everyone present sat in deep contemplation, weighing the gravity of his words.

The information provided was staggering. When coupled with the mention of "Corrosion," the implications were almost too heavy to process at once.

"It is no wonder the previous search yielded no results; the teleportation gate was the missing link."

Gael eventually broke the quiet, turning to Leo Ray with a grim look. "Lord, at the time Old Nick was discovered, the Mercenary Guild of Viennas City invited me to join an elite squad to scout the magic beast cave where he was found."

"I distinctly recall finding an ancient magic array etched into the floor deep within that den. However, the mage accompanying us tried to activate it with Mana to no effect."

"Because it remained dormant, I simply took a rubbing of the array and didn't investigate further. I never suspected it was actually an ancient teleportation formation."

"This clarifies why our search was fruitless. The true site of the incident wasn't the cave itself, but an ancient ruin hidden far beyond that gate."

Grey Elder nodded in agreement, adding his own insights. "I reviewed the rubbing of that ancient magic array in the archives, but even after thorough research, we found nothing of use."

"It appears that when Old Nick used the teleportation gate to escape the ruins, it fell back into a state of dormancy. The mechanism must have suffered further damage, rendering it impossible to restart."

Kelsey, who had been listening intently, felt her eyes widen in realization. "Does this mean that a massive concentration of 'Corrosion' is trapped beneath a magic beast cave near Viennas City? If they ever break free, the danger would be catastrophic!"

The weight of her words caused the atmosphere in the room to turn even more oppressive.

Those who had fought in the Dragon Nest, particularly Leo Ray and Grey Elder, understood the stakes perfectly.

Standard combat techniques are useless against "Corrosion." Even a Tier 6 powerhouse finds their strikes ineffective. The only weapon capable of harming them is the divine power of the [God Stone].

Furthermore, only those chosen by the [God Stone] can harness its strength. Including Leo Ray, there are only a handful of such individuals in existence.

This reality painted a grim picture: if a tide of "Corrosion" were to surge from the lightless depths of the earth, these parasitic, madness-inducing entities would spark a disaster unlike any seen before.

In fact, if their numbers were truly vast, there would be no hope for survival. Everything would be erased.

After all, the [God Stone] does not possess infinite power; once its energy is spent, it requires significant time to recover.